Controller for cords to electric irons



June 1954 N. ROBINSON 2,680,789

CONTROLLER FOR CORDS TO ELECTRIC moms Filed May 15, 1950 8 35 Hg. 2. I2? a /5 i9 25 25 /6 Inventor in X 1 ww wlwu 0 Z6 1' i0 mwaflomegs Patented June 8, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CONTROLLER FOR CORns T ELECTRIC IRONS Claims. 1

This invention relates to a control device for the conductor cord leading to an electric iron. In the use of electric irons in ironing clothes and fabrics, the electric conductor cord leading from the iron to the outlet receptacle in the house wiring system is always getting in the way and the operator has to be careful not to burn the insulation by contact of the cord with the hot iron, and it is therefore a fire hazard, and the cord getting onto the articles being operated upon interferes with the free and unrestricted use of the iron. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a simple and effective device which will operate automatically to keep the electric cord out of the operators way while ironing.

Another object is to provide such a device which will not interfere with the proper and effective use of the iron, and which will, by its use, require very little if any added effort on the part of the operator.

With the above and other objects in view, I have devised the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawing. It is, however, to be understood the invention is not limited to the specific details of construction and arrangement shown, but may embody various changes and modifications within the scope of the invention.

In this drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side View of an ironing board shown somewhat diagrammatically, showing my improved cord control applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a top plan View on a larger scale of the tray and other parts used with the device;

Fig. 3 is a side view looking toward the bottom of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail section substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. l, and

Fig. 5 is another detail section substantially on line 55 of Fig. 3 showing the preferred means of mounting the slip rod.

A conventional ironing board is indicated at l 8 having the usual foldable supporting structure including the legs I l and I2 and connecting structure l3 mounted to fold against the bottom of the board, but these elements are shown only diagrammatically as they form no part of the present invention. The wooden board portion [4 is covered with the usual pad or cloth [5. At one end of this board and preferably extending outwardly therefrom a short distance is a supporting tray It on which to rest the electric fiatiron I? when not in use, and laterally spaced arms is are provided for supporting the tray of any suitable and desired construction, that shown being a pair of fiat metal strips secured at their inner ends l9 to the board [4 by any suitable means, such as bolts or screws 20, and secured to the under side of the tray It by any suitable means, such as the bolts or screws 2|. This tray may be of metal or any other suitable material, and preferably is provided with a peripheral flange 22 to prevent the iron I! falling off.

In common practice there is an electric cord 23 leading from the iron I! carrying the insulated conductor wires leading to an attachment plug cap 24 for plugging into the standard type of outlet receptacle of the house wiring system, usually located in the wall of the room adjacent the ironing board. In the present case, instead of plugging this cap into the wall outlet receptacle it is plugged into a similar receptacle 25 located at any suitable position on this device, such, for example, as on the inner side edge of the tray It or on one of the supporting arms l8, or both, as shown in Fig. 2, so that either may be used at the option of the operator. From this receptacle a conductor cord 26 leads to a standard attachment plug cap 2'! which may be plugged into the wall outlet receptacle. It will be understood the receptacles 25 are provided with the usual entrance slots 28 leading to the contacts within the receptacle connected with the wires in the cord 26, and which contacts are engaged by the contact blades on the cap 24 as it is plugged into this receptacle to complete the electric circuit to the iron IT.

The cord 23 is formed into a vertical loop, as shown in Fig. 1, and is passed down through the opening 29 between the tray [6 and the end 3!) of the ironing board I9, and on this cord is placed a small weight 3| carried by any suitable support, as the block or frame 32 carrying a small pulley 33 running on the cord 23. A simple construction for the frame or block 32 is to provide it of a strip of sheet metal bent to inverted U shape and secured at the end of one leg to the weight 3|, as shown at 34. The free end 35 of the other leg i left unattached and before being applied to the cord 23 is bent out to the dotted line position of Fig. 4. to permit insertion of the cord between this free end and the weight onto the pulley 33. Then the end can be bent down to the full line position shown in Fig. 4 to retain the device on the cord.

Spaced a short distance from the end 30 of the ironing board is a slip rod 36 extending transversely between the supporting arms l8, and a simple and effective means of mounting this rod is to bend the free ends downwardly and pass them through openings 31 in the arms [8, and

off the ironing board so that it is not in the way and does not interfere in any way with the ironing operation. The slip rod 36 permits the cord to be easily moved up and down to correspond with movements of the iron, as it has much less friction than would the end of the ironing board or the cloth cover of this board. The counterbalance weight 3l, together with the pulley and the mounting frame, is preferably of only sufiicient weight to properly keep the cord 23' oi? the ironing board, as shown in Fig. 1, and not sufficient to materially increase the efiort required to move the iron in the ironing operation. It is preferred to provide a hinge joint 39 in each of the supporting arms [8 so that when not in use the tray it may be folded over onto the top of the ironing board and thus require a smaller space for storage when the board and the device are not in use.

Having thus set forth the nature of my invention, I claim:

1. A cord control for electric irons comprising a support for the iron when not in use including means for mounting the support on an ironing board spaced from one end of said board, a

conductor cord connected to the iron provided with an attachment plug cap, means mounting an electric plug-in receptacle adjacent said support for detachably plugging in the attachment plug cap on the conductor cord leading to the iron with said cord forming a depending loop in the space between the support and the end of the board, a counterweight mounted to be supported by and run on said loop to automatically maintain the loop in said space during use of the iron, and means for electrically connecting the is.

receptacle to an outlet receptacle of a house wiring system.

2. A cord control for electric irons comprising a support including a tray for supporting an electric iron when not in use and means for securing said tray to an ironing board spaced from one edge of the board, a conductor cord connected with the iron provided with an attachment plug cap, an electric plug-in receptacle mounted on said support in position to receive the attachr.

ment plug cap of the conductor cord leading from said iron with the cord forming a depending loop in the space between the edge of the board and the tray, a counterweight supported by and running on said loop to automatically maintain the loop during movements of the iron in the ironing operation, and a conductor cord leading from said receptacle and provided with a plug-in cap for connection to an outlet receptacle of a house Wiring system.

3. A cord control for electric irons comprising a support including a tray for supporting an electric iron when not in use and a pair of spaced arms leading from the tray for fastening it to an ironing board spaced from one edge thereof, a

conductor cord connected with the iron provided with an attachment plug cap, a slip rod extending transversely between the arms in position to support the cord out of contact with the board, an electric plug-in receptacle mounted on. said support in position to receive the attachment plug cap of the conductor cord leading from said iron with the cord supported on said rod and forming a depending loop in the space between the arms and between the rod and the tray, a counterweight supported by and running on said loop to automatically maintain the loop in said space during movements of the iron in the ironing operation, and a conductor cord leading from said receptacle and provided with a plug-in cap for connection to an outlet receptacle of a house wiring system.

4. A cord control for electric irons having a conductor cord and plug cap connected therewith, comprising an electric plug-in receptacle, means for mounting the receptacle on an ironing board spaced from one end of the board in position for detachably plugging into it the attachment plug cap of said conductor cord, a lead cord and plug leading from the receptacle for detachably plugging into an outlet receptacle of a house wiring system, a guide means for the conductor cord from the iron mounted on the board in a position to hold this cord out of contact with the board and permitting a downwardly extending loop in this cord in the space between the end of the board and the first receptacle, and a counterweight on said loop including supporting means supported by and running on the cord to maintain the loop in said space as the iron is moved back and forth.

5. A cord control for electric irons comprising as a unit a support including a tray for supporting an electric iron when not in use and spaced arms extending laterally from the tray forming means for securing said tray to an ironing board spaced from one edge of the board, a conductor cord connected with the iron and an electric receptacle mounted on the unit for electrically connecting said cord with an outlet receptacle of a house wiring system, a slip rod mounted on and extending transversely between said arms spaced from the tray in position to hold the cord out of contact with the board, means connecting the cord to the first receptacle with the cord extending from the iron over the rod and forming a depending loop between the rod and the tray in the space between the arms and between the board and the tray, and a counterweight supported by and running on this loop to automatically maintain the loop in said space during movement of the iron in the ironing operation. 5

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